Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures

Tips on Ways To Purchase and Look For Genuine Canadian Inuit Art (Eskimo Art) Sculptures

Lots of visitors to Canada will be exposed to Inuit art (Eskimo art) sculptures while touring the country. These are the magnificent handmade sculptures carved from stone by the Inuit artists living in the northern Arctic areas of Canada. While in some of the major Canadian cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Montreal, Ottawa, and Quebec City) or other traveler areas popular with international visitors such as Banff, Inuit sculptures will be seen at numerous retail shops and displayed at some museums. Because Inuit art has been getting increasingly more global direct exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian art type at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. As a result, it will be natural for numerous travelers and art collectors to decide that they wish to buy Inuit sculptures as nice keepsakes for their homes or as very distinct presents for others. Presuming that the intent is to get an authentic piece of Inuit art instead of a inexpensive traveler imitation, the concern arises on how does one tell apart the genuine thing from the fakes?

It would be pretty disappointing to bring home a piece only to learn later that it isn't authentic or even made in Canada. If one is fortunate enough to be traveling in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their fantastic artwork, then it can be securely presumed that any Inuit art piece bought from a local northern store or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. One would have to be more careful elsewhere in Canada, specifically in traveler locations where all sorts of other Canadian souvenirs such as t-shirts, hockey jerseys, postcards, essential chains, maple syrup, and other Native Canadian arts are offered.

The best places to shop for Inuit sculptures to ensure authenticity are constantly the trustworthy galleries that specialize in Canadian Inuit art and Eskimo art. A few of these galleries have ads in the city tour guide found in hotels.

Credible Inuit art galleries are also listed in Inuit Art Quarterly publication which is devoted totally to Inuit art. These galleries will generally be found in the downtown tourist areas of significant cities. When one walks into these galleries, one will see that there will be only Inuit art and perhaps Native art but none of the other usual traveler souvenirs such as postcards or tee shirts . These galleries will have just genuine Inuit art for sale as they do not deal with fakes or replicas . Just to be even more secure, make certain that the piece you have an interest in comes with a Canadian federal government Igloo tag licensing that it was handmade by a Canadian Inuit artist. The Inuit sculpture might be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics but not all genuine pieces are signed. So understand that an unsigned piece might still be indeed authentic.

Some of these Inuit art galleries also have websites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from house anywhere in the world. In addition to these street retail specialty galleries, there are now credible online galleries that also specialize in genuine Inuit art.

Some traveler stores do carry genuine Inuit art in addition to the other touristy souvenirs in order to deal with all kinds of travelers. When shopping at these kinds of stores, it is possible to differentiate the real pieces from the reproductions. Genuine Inuit sculpture is carved from stone and therefore needs to have some weight or mass to it. Stone is likewise cold to the touch. A reproduction made from plastic or resin from a mold will be much lighter in weight and will not be cold to the touch. A reproduction will sometimes have a business name on it such as Wolf Originals or Boma and will never ever feature an artist's signature. An authentic Inuit sculpture is a one of a kind click site piece of artwork and nothing else on the shop shelves will look exactly like it. If there are duplicates of a specific piece with specific information, the piece is not authentic. If a piece looks too best in detail with absolute straight bottoms or sides, it is probably not real. Obviously, if a piece features a sticker suggesting that is was made in an Asian nation, then it is clearly a fake. There will also be a huge rate distinction in between genuine pieces and the imitations.

Where it ends up being more difficult to identify authenticity are with the reproductions that are also made from stone. This can be a real gray area to those not familiar with authentic Inuit art. They do have mass and might even have some type of tag showing that it was handcrafted but if there are other pieces on the shelves that look too comparable in detail, they are probably not authentic. If a seller claims that such as piece is genuine, ask to see the main Igloo tag that features it which will have information on the artist, area where it was made and the year it was carved. Move on if the Igloo tag is not readily available. The genuine pieces with the accompanying official Igloo tags will always be the greatest priced and are typically kept in a different (perhaps even locked) shelf within the store.

Since Inuit art has been getting more and more global exposure, people might be seeing this Canadian great art form at museums and galleries located outside Canada too. If one is lucky enough to be taking a trip in the Canadian Arctic where the Inuit live and make their wonderful art work, then it can be securely assumed that any Inuit art piece purchased from a regional northern shop or directly from an Inuit carver would be genuine. Trustworthy Inuit art galleries are also noted in Inuit Art Quarterly magazine which is devoted totally to Inuit art. The Inuit sculpture may be signed by the carver either in English or Inuit syllabics however not all authentic pieces are signed. Some of these Inuit art galleries also have sites so you could shop and buy genuine Inuit art sculpture from home anywhere in the world.